HRH Info

HRH Info: Why is Teamwork in Healthcare Important?

Teamwork in health is defined as two or more people who interact interdependently with a common purpose, working toward measurable goals that benefit from leadership that maintains stability while encouraging honest discussion and problem solving. Researchers have found that integrating services among many health providers is a key component to better treat undeserved populations and communities with limited access to health care.

The present study attempts to examine the role of specialist services in rural public health system of India in the areas of maternal and child healthcare. The study uses primary data collected through a survey of doctors and paramedical staff working at public health facilities regarding availability and quality of the specialist services in gynaecology, paediatrics and anaesthesia.

The aims of this study were to design a participatory antenatal care (ANC) strengthening intervention and assess the implementation process and effectiveness on quality of ANC in Jimma, Ethiopia. [from abstract]

Skilled birth attendance (SBA) has been shown to reduce maternal mortality and improve birth outcomes. Because skilled professionals are supposed to be present in health facilities, increasing facility deliveries is expected to increase SBA. However, in a country with a critical shortage of skilled health personnel, is this always the case? We present data from three studies conducted in Zambia to understand SBA and delivery practices in health facilities. [from abstract]

“Integrated” behavioral health care most often refers to coordinated primary care and mental health care delivery at a co-located clinical site or psychiatric consultation service to a primary care clinical site. Women’s perinatal medical and mental health is an ideal target for integrated, patient-centered, and family-centered care. [from abstract]

The Government of Enugu State plans to offer free perinatal services at the primary health care (PHC) centers in order to improve perinatal outcomes in the state, but it was not clear whether there are skilled birth attendants (SBAs) at the PHC level to implement the program. This study aims to determine whether there are sufficient numbers of SBAs in the public PHC system in Enugu State of Nigeria. [adapted from abstract]

Despite the existence of modern health facilities in Nigeria, over 58 percent of deliveries take place at home. As outcomes of pregnancy and their sequelae are purely left to the providence of women in many rural communities, the place of delivery is a great determinant of maternal and child morbidity and mortality. [from abstract]

The study utilized a non-systematic review of the literature using key words such as community health
workers, traditional birth attendants, reproductive health, child health and health outcomes. A case study from
Timor-Leste was also used. [from abstract]

It is in the context of Ghana’s persistently high number of maternal deaths that the Integrated Social Development Centre (ISODEC) is simulating two policy scenarios: (1) Training and deploying Skilled Birth Attendants (SBAs) at health centers in the five worst affected regions of Ghana by the year 2015 and (2) Training and deploying SBAs at district hospitals in the five worst affected regions of Ghana by the same year to find out if one or both will help Ghana achieve, or be close to achieving, the MDG 5 target of a maternal mortality rate of 185 per 100,000 live births by 2015.

Improving maternal and reproductive health still remains a major challenge in most low-income countries especially in sub-Saharan Africa. The growing inequality in access to maternal health interventions is an issue of great concern. In Ghana, inadequate attention has been given to the inequality gap that exists amongst women when accessing antenatal care during pregnancy and skilled attendance at birth.

Task shifting is seen as a way to improve access to pregnancy and childbirth care. However, the role of traditional birth attendants (TBAs) within task shifting initiatives remains contested. The objective of this study was to explore stakeholder views and justifications regarding the incorporation of TBAs into formal health systems. [from abstract]

This paper reports about knowledge and practices of traditional birth attendants on emergency obstetric care in a rural district of Tanzania and discusses policy implications on involving traditional birth attendants in maternal health services. [adapted from abstract]

This paper focuses on maternal “no one present” (NOP) deliveries and aims at using empirical data to describe patterns, levels, and correlates of deliveries with NOP in Nigeria. Findings from this study are expected to contribute to policy and program strategy to better address the delivery needs of women in the community. [adapted from author]

Community-based maternal and newborn care programs with postnatal home visits from providers who can deliver preventive or curative services that save lives have been tested in Bangladesh, Malawi, and Nepal. This paper examines coverage and content of home visits in pilot areas and factors associated with receipt of postnatal visits. [adapted from abstract]

The study contributes to quality improvement programs responsible for accelerating reduction of maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality in Uganda. It documents and informs clinicians, hospital managers, and policy makers about quality of care aspects that need to be improved in promoting newborns and maternal survival and well being during labor to promote women’s utilization of skilled attendance at birth. [from author]

This study aims to explore the perspectives of community members and health workers about the use of delivery care services in six villages of West Java Province where many women still deliver at home and without the assistance of trained birth attendants. [from abstract]

This protocol will test the effect of community mobilization through women’s groups, and health management committee strengthening, on institutional deliveries and home deliveries attended by trained health workers. [adapted from abstract]

The promotion of delivery with a skilled birth attendant (SBA) is being promoted as a strategy to reduce neonatal mortality. This study explored whether SBAs had a protective effect against neonatal mortality in three different regions of the world. [from abstract]

The aim of this study was to describe the weaknesses in the provision of acceptable and adequate quality care through the accounts of women who have suffered obstetric fistula, nurse-midwives at both BEmOC and CEmOC health facilities and local community members. [from abstract]

The objectives of this research were to describe women’s health-seeking behaviour and experiences regarding their use of antenatal and postnatal care; their rationale behind the choice of place and delivery; and to learn about the use of traditional practices and resources applied by traditional birth attendants and how they can be linked to the bio-medical health system. [from abstract]

This study attempted to determine the best way to implement new strategies of medical abortion and increase safety and access using auxiliary nurse midwives trained as skilled birth attendants [adapted from author].

This review is to explore the factors affecting the uptake of skilled birth attendants for delivery and the issues associated with women’s role and choices of maternal health care service for delivery in Nepal. [from abstract]

This analysis shows that a program to introduce emergency obstetric care and a referral system rapidly and significantly reduced the level of maternal mortality in two project areas in Burundi and Sierra Leone. [adapated from author]

The objective of this systematic review was to assess the effectiveness of strategies incorporating training and support of traditional birth attendants on the outcomes of perinatal, neonatal, and maternal death in developing countries. [from abstract]

This study compares and contrasts two provider types - obstetric nurses and professional midwives - with the medical model, analyzing perspectives on their respective training, scope of practice, and also their perception and experiences with integration into the public system as skilled birth attendants. [from abstract]

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